Jared Hoying’s first home run trot.

Austin Bibens-Dirkx’s first major league pitch.

Every once in a while, you get one of those games that seems more like someone is playing a PlayStation game, and they have it on Easy mode.

The Rangers scored nine runs, but really should have had a lot more, loading the bases on two different occasions in the first, once with no outs, once with two outs, scoring only one run, and only on a sacrifice fly.

They got the first two on in the second as well, and scored just one, also on a sac fly.

They made it 3-0 in the third, again on a sac fly, and it looked like they were going to just peck away at nothing.

Then the PlayStation game loaded. The floodgates opened and the Rangers put it away, giving Andrew Cashner his first win as a Ranger.

When it was all said and done, they had seventeen hits. Jared Hoying had four, Shin Soo Choo had three with three RBIs. And the Rangers extended their winning streak to eight games, their longest streak since winning eight in a row in 2013.

It was a game with two significant firsts. Actually, three.

After forty big league games, Jared Hoying hit his first major league home run.

And after 318 minor league games over twelve seasons, and more than a week of sitting in the Rangers dugout waiting, Austin Bibens-Dirkx became a major league pitcher, throwing what can only be described as a full ninth inning. He pretty much did everything in one inning. He hit a batter, struck out a batter, gave up a hit, gave up a run, induced a pop up, induced a ground ball.

So now the Rangers play this afternoon with a chance to sweep its third series in a row.

They head into today’s game over .500.

For the first time this season.

*****
TODAY’S GAME:

Nick Pivetta (0-2, 6.14) vs. Martin Perez (1-5, 3.89)
Game time: 1:05

How the Phillies hit against Perez.
Nick Pivetta has never faced the Rangers.